1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric supply apparatus having a wiring harness being bent freely in a protector and urged by a leaf spring to absorb sag thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIGS. 13 and 14 are an embodiment of a conventional electric supply apparatus, for example, JP,2002-17032,A.
The electric supply apparatus 50 is disposed in a sliding door 41 of a motor vehicle. The electric supply apparatus 50 has a protector 42 (a cover is not shown), which is made of a synthetic resin, receiving a wiring harness 43 flexibly, and a metal leaf spring 44 to urge the wiring harness 43 upwardly in the protector 42.
A lower end portion of the leaf spring 44 is fixed to a forward and lower portion of the protector 42 together with the wiring harness 43. A front end portion of the leaf spring 44 supports the wiring harness 43 slidably. The front end portion of the leaf spring 44 is covered with a cap 49 made of a synthetic resin and supports stably the wiring harness 43.
The wiring harness 43 has a plurality of electric cables 43a covered with a corrugate tube 43b made of a synthetic resin. The flexible corrugated tube 43b is fixed to the protector 42 with a tape at a front and lower end portion.
One end portion of the electric cables 43a of the wiring harness 43 is led out through a front portion of the protector 42 to auxiliary units of the sliding door 41. The corrugated tube 43b of the wiring harness 43 is wired to a vehicle body 47 slidably through an elongated lower opening 45 of the protector 42 and a stepping space 46.
FIG. 13 shows a fully closed state of the sliding door 41 and FIG. 14 is a half opened state close to a fully opened state. The wiring harness 43 is pulled backwardly at the fully closed state, and pulled forwardly at the fully opened state. When the sliding door 41 is in the half opened state, the wiring harness tends to sag downwardly. However, the leaf spring 44 urges the wiring harness 43 upwardly to absorb the sag (excess length) and prevent to be sandwiched by other portions.
In the conventional electric supply apparatus, especially for vehicles having a large sliding distance of a sliding door 41, an excess length of the wiring harness 43 in the protector becomes large so that the height of the protector becomes large and arrangements of other parts in the sliding door are reduced.
When the sliding door is fully closed or opened, the wiring harness 43 is strongly pulled so that the lifetime of the wiring harness 43 is reduced at the portion fixed at the protector 42. The corrugated tube 43b is utilized as a protective tube of the wiring harness 43 in the protector. However, the corrugated tube 43b has a lower flexibility compared with a net tube, not shown, made of a synthetic resin.